The postings of a customs lawyer in Chicago on the state of customs law and international trade law. Important Disclaimer: None of this is legal advice, don't act on it. Don't ascribe these statements to my law firm, its partners or clients. Don't steal from my blog. I wrote it, I own it. But, feel free to link to me. Also, under the rules regulating speech by attorneys, this blog may be construed as lawyer advertising. I am the sole party responsible for the content.

Thursday, December 20, 2007

Spicy Seizure

I like hot peppers as much as the next guy. Maybe more so. I am particularly fond of hot Italian-style giardiniera. Scala's Packing (click on Italian Style Peppers) in Chicago makes the best. But, I am also fond of the humble jalapeno, which may be why this story caught my eye.

It seems that someone smuggled several bricks of marijuana into the U.S. from Mexico by submerging them in bottles of pickled jalapenos. Perhaps they figured no Gringo would stick his or her hand into the jar just on a hunch. Or maybe the thinking was that a dog could not smell through the peppers to find the pot. Hard to tell. Either way, Customs and Border Protection did its job and found the drugs.

But, Dude! I wonder whether . . . you know . . . the weed . . . if smoked . . . would have had a spicy Chili's Tex-Mex kind of harsh to kill the mellow. Only Otto Mann would know for sure.